What technologies need advancement for eBikes?

[bigmoose]

Sort of an open question to the community. What technologies do you think need advancement for eBikes to be more accepted, reliable, efficient and/or accepted.

I am interested in knowing what this distinguished community of developers and users think is missing.

 

[Trackman417]

Better battery's are a must.
I just started to see an influx in BMS' that seem to do really well. They also meet a variety of different price levels depending on the features you want.
Who has enough space on their bikes to store enough battery's to go 50miles without restricting speed and riding like you normally drive? I sure don't!

 

[liveforphysics]

Sinus drive or better, motor BEMF sampling and matching drive.

Battery/BMS solutions with premium EV grade cells and parts in rugged lightweight weatherproof housings.

 

[John in CR]

Cheaper batteries and improvements in the reasonably priced controllers throttle and regen braking functions. Regen should be a combination of regen and plug braking, with the plug braking taking over at low speed where regen cuts off. I've used some controllers that had plug braking and like it, because it works down to a stop. The problems are that you give up the prime region of energy recovery of regen, and you can't use it from high speed all the way down to a full stop because it's too much heat.

 

[voicecoils]

I don't think battery performance or cost are a major hinderances in ebikes. e-Cars and e-Motorbikes are different with their energy consumption particularly at highway speeds. Battery power and energy density are already quite sufficient and steadily improving in ebikes.

You can already have a 3kg battery that takes you 20-40km at bicycle speeds. Enough for many people's commutes, errands and recreational rides.
With 16kg of battery, you can travel nearly 300km per charge as I've demonstrated. That's a lot more weight and cost, but not prohibitively so in either case.

Battery improvements needed:
* Better BMS (more reliable, better diagnostics, faster balancing)
* More robust interconnects, wiring and connectors.

General ebike improvements:
* Better connectors and wiring (waterproofing, robustness, serviceability)
* Better diagnostic feedback to end users (if something goes wrong, where to look for a loose connection or a component to replace)
* Better throttles (waterproofing, robustness, serviceability, inbuilt redundancy, failsafes)

 

[jateureka]

+1 on what voicecoils said on improvesments.

I'd also like to see better e-brakes, particularly hydraulic disc.

 

[Lebowski]

good dead-reliable high PWM frequency capable power stage...

cheap battery packs with build-in state-of-charge indicator which can be charged via single wire (like on all the commercial e-bikes)

good vendor who ships stuff cheaply and can be relied upon.

 

[Chalo]

Better batteries. And by "better" I do not mean more power-dense (though that wouldn't hurt), but more reliable, long-lasting, and "transparent" to the user.

The operator of a stinking gas motorcycle doesn't have to worry routinely about the properties of his gasoline or the state of his tank. He only needs to know how much fuel he has. That's where batteries need to be before they make sense for most potential users. They should be of no more concern than a starting battery is in a stinking gas motorcycle.

If batteries are to require BMS, then its reliability and transparency must be included in that of the battery. And to be frank, that's where battery reliability and ease of maintenance are most likely to come in. The operating requirements for any given battery are parameters that a BMS can observe and enforce. Why the user's intervention should ever be required is only a matter of inadequate engineering effort on the part of the manufacturer. Laptops and phones manage their own batteries well enough that drooling retards can live with them. EVs should meet the same standard.

It's true that we can benefit from improvements to controllers, and to a lesser extent from improvements to motors, but these things are only small details in comparison to the glaring shortcomings of batteries.

 

[neptronix]

Easier chain drive setups.

 

[Nanoha]

A more reliable and lighter bulk charger small enough to be mounted on the bike with a recoil wire reel.
Also batteries with energy density comparible or exceeding gasoline would be awesome.

 

[dogman dan]

Lotta responses about battery issues. But it seems to me that torque arms, slashed wires at the axle, and 14mm axles in 10 mm slots is still big problem.

I'm just waiting for the 10mm round axle at the dropouts, and torque arms integrated into the motor as Heinzmann did a decade or more ago. Are the Chinese really afraid to copy a patented design?

This approach also gave a big space for the wires to exit the motor.

 

[Kingfish]

It’s been said before; I like what I am hearing. Allow me to parrot back the best ideas in no priority...

Power Management: High Density Battery coupled with fast-charging infrastructure. This is emerging technology and we have only to wait a bit longer. An inexpensive BMS that is not parasitic; monitors pack temps and runs diagnostics in situ if there’s a rapid rise. Solid waterproof connector evolution. Give us crimp-style bullet connectors.

Controllers: Programmable sino controllers with efficient microelectronics that can be linked out of the box by using a common communication bus to flesh out All-Wheel Drive needs. Make them in different classes: Ebike, EMoto, ECar, ETruck… Full-features include robust Cruise, power-mapping profiles (especially considering AWD), multistage Throttle. Support for 6-Phase motors (more for cars, boats, and trucks). Liquid-cooled.

Motors: Ironless. Domestic REE supply. Liquid-cooled. Multiphased. Stackable to meet power requirements. Bolt-on ISO-standard Torque Arms and connectivity for Cycles.

Driving Experience: Dynamic suspension built for speed or for rough road. Imaging system with HUD for foul weather and fog. Anti-slip traction control for AWD. Airless tires. And a James Bond style license plate flipper combined with the standard array of patented Cop-Away® features that comes stock with all stealthy cycles. Winning Lotto Prediction System; this is really high on my list

Cheers! KF

 

[iperov]

1) 26" aluminium magnesium casted wheels with motor like this

2)
suspension frames with BB motor
like this

3) BB kit with normal price like this

 

[gogo]

I'd like to see infrastructure technology improvements concerning EOL (end of line) or destination accommodation. In terms of value/weight, ebikes are highly vulnerable to theft. Its just too easy to cut a lock and pitch them into a pick-up or SUV.

I stored my redundant transportation, a 78 Buick sedan, at a regular destination and 'parked' my ebike in it for the purpose of security and weather protection. I'd have been driving the Buick, (whose catalytic converter alone consumes more energy than the ebike), otherwise.

The public in general either could give a rat's ass about bikes, or consider them vermin. I reject my ebike as suitable for utility tasks more than 50% of the time due to insufficient EOL accommodations.

Microprocessor control of the engine/transmission management is the main difference between my 78 and 94 Buicks, and wow, what a difference. I could plumb in a simple 'dry shot' of nitrous oxide on the 94 Buick and the stock engine controls would handle up to a 45% increase in power. Similar integrated battery/controller/motor smarts for ebikes, much like is done on Zero motorcycles, are needed for mass acceptance.

 

[Drunkskunk]

While everything needs refinement, Its the batteries that are the hold up now.

Controllers could be better, but they are already fairly darn good. Motors could be better, but its not hard to get the efficiency over 85% now. moving to CST from freewheel would be good, but freewheel sprockets have more flexibility in application right now. There is a wider range of affordable bikes that use freewheels, so for the moment, There isn't much room for improvement in either case.

The biggest room for improvement is in the battery. Batteries don't have near the power density of gas, and they don't have the reliability or consistency of gas. We need a battery that will last 10 years at 80% in harsh conditions, can get 1000watts per pound, and have a failure rate of 1 cell in a million or less. We also need a charge rate of at least 20C.

 

[cal3thousand]

Charger technologies could also use a boost.

If we can't get our ideal batteries now, how about augmenting their capacity by having a faster, safer, more robust charging mechanisms?

I know that Justin is working on the Satiator and that will bring us closer to mainstream acceptance, but how about a controller that can also charge your battery? Average consumers would be interested in something that you can just hook up to the wall and be done with it.

 

[flathill]

nothing really

we just need better integration/robustness/refinement of the system, not tech advancement

nice to have:

ultralight ironless wheels motors with magnetic gearing shell riding on magnetic bearings

so maybe next gen magnets and carbon nanotube wire (1/10th the weight of copper, same electrical conductivity, better thermal conductivity, stronger, no corrosion)....need to be released from the labs

We haven't had a permanent magnet breakthrough since 19 f'in 82
neo mags already enable magnetic gearing with better torque density than conventional metal gears
can you imagine N500NEH (>500 KOe rated to 200C) magnets and spintronic batteries

 

[999zip999]

More ebikes more ebike laws.

 

[speedmd]

Better / simpler charging setup.

Simple rugged tranny/ gear reduction for compact /rc type motors.

Stronger bike size chains / sprockets

Automatic torque integration to pedaling cadence / bike speed

Standardized / Simpler range extension modules to battery packs.

Stock / Standard / dedicated ebike frame designs / motor / battery kits that are affordable.

 

[dogman dan]

I'd be happy to get battery prices down by 50%, even if nothing changed. Lifepo4 prices haven't dropped in 5 years or so. That would truly get ebike transport cheaper than a bus.

But I'd also like to get better battery monitoring built in. Pings blinky lights are a good start, but it would be cool if they lit another color to indicate a low cell. A wattmeter or whatever built in to the battery would be nice too. I could also be made dummy friendly. Maybe just a row of lights that lights up or goes out as each ah enters, or leaves. Cycle count would be nice too.

 

[Arlo1]

variable regen.

 

[Ykick]

Is rider education/training considered technology? All the hardware in the world is useless if new riders never learn to stay alive. Perhaps there's a market opportunity for "ride simulators" demonstrating common traffic situations and bike operation?

Another obstacle for adopting bikes as serious transportation is weather. There needs to be more advancements of weather clothing gear (heating/cooling) technology to better grow the adoption and use of bikes.

As far as bike hardware goes - cheaper, lighter, better batteries, more standardized axle attachment for hubbies, better universal BB drive options....

 

[speedmd]

better battery monitoring built in. Pings blinky lights are a good start, but it would be cool if they lit another color to indicate a low cell

Like this one dogman. Something like the thin film bar thermometers would be great.

 

[Lebowski]

variable regen.

We got that

 

[lbz5mc12]

What we need are different sized pre-built battery housings for triangle frames. Basically it would attach to the water bottle bolt holes in the frame on the bottom tube or come with U-bolts if you don't have a water bottle mount. I'm talking a full enclosure with a removable side panel kind of like a PC and a couple of holes for the wiring. Not only would it have the mounting screws but also a strip of industrial strength metal bonding adhesive to run along the bottom tube towards the front of the frame to better secure the housing to the frame. Kind of like a peel and stick and maybe have the bottom of it curved concave to fit over the frame better. I mean the triangle bags are cool and all but they're not very secure when you lock up your bike somewhere. We need something that can be locked shut and not easily cut into.